[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 19, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2903-2904]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1131]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Public Health Service


Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Statement of 
Organization, Functions, and Delegations of Authority

    Part C (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) of the 
Statement of Organization, Functions, and Delegations of Authority of 
the Department of Health and Human Services (45 FR 67772-76, dated 
October 14, 1980, and corrected at 45 FR 069296, October 20, 1980, as 
amended most recently at 63 FR 50916-17, dated September 23, 1998) is 
amended to reflect reorganization of the Division of Respiratory 
Disease Studies, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 
(NIOSH).
    Section C-B, Organization and Functions, is hereby amended as 
follows:
    After the title for the Division of Respiratory Disease Studies 
(CCA), delete the functional statement and insert the following:
    (1) Provides national and international leadership for 
understanding and preventing occupational respiratory disease; (2) 
plans, designs and conducts a national research program for the 
prevention of occupational respiratory disease; (3) upon request, 
conducts hazard evaluations and provides technical assistance to 
address emerging problems in occupational respiratory disease; (4) 
plans, designs and conducts a national surveillance program for 
occupational respiratory diseases; (5)-communicates study findings for 
the prevention of occupational respiratory diseases and evaluates the 
effectiveness of these communications; (6) carries out a program of 
testing, evaluation, certification, and quality assurance monitoring of 
respiratory protective devices and publishes and promulgates such 
regulations, notices, and findings necessary for the efficient and 
effective conduct of these programs under the Federal Mine Safety and 
Health Act (FMSHAct) of 1977 and the Occupational Safety and Health Act 
(OSHAct) of 1970; (7) administers a program of legislatively mandated

[[Page 2904]]

medical services for coal miners under the FMSHAct of 1977.
    After the title and functional statement for the Office of the 
Director (CCA1), insert the following:
    Communication and Information Activity (CCA12). (1) Collaborates 
with Division staff to translate findings from research, surveillance 
and other Division activities to produce products that motivate 
respiratory disease prevention activities; (2) coordinates with other 
health communication, health education, and information dissemination 
activities within the Institute to ensure the effective dissemination 
of these products; (3) coordinates all Division activities relating to 
grants and cooperative agreements in conjunction with the NIOSH Office 
of Extramural Coordination and Special Projects; (4) provides the 
Division with systems analysis, archiving guidance, and computer 
programming support; (5) coordinates and promotes regular seminars, 
workshops, and other meetings as necessary; (6) operates the Division's 
local area network in coordination with the NIOSH Office of 
Administrative and Management Services, Management Systems Branch.
    Field Studies Branch (CCA7). (1) Designs and conducts short- and 
long-term field investigations of occupational respiratory diseases; 
(2) responds to requests for health hazard evaluations and technical 
assistance relevant to occupational respiratory disease; (3) conducts 
morbidity and mortality studies relating to occupational respiratory 
diseases in order to: (a) identify causal agents (and other risk 
factors); (b) quantify exposure-effect relationships; (c) evaluate 
prevalence and severity of specific respiratory diseases in selected 
worker populations; (4) conducts environmental studies, industrial 
hygiene research, experiments, and demonstrations of workplace 
exposures and controls including the use of respiratory protective 
equipment, and to study problems created by new technology; (5) 
provides statistical design and implements data analysis and 
verification for Division research projects; (6) develops and evaluates 
research methods of data collection, processing, and statistical 
analysis.
    Laboratory Research Branch (CCA9). (1) Conducts laboratory research 
complementary to and coordinated with field investigations of 
occupational respiratory diseases and respirator testing and 
certification; (2) formulates and implements laboratory research which 
will identify factors involved in the early detection and differential 
rates of susceptibility to occupational respiratory disease; (3) 
develops new methods to improve detection and measurement of human 
response to respiratory hazards found in the workplace; (4) develops 
new methods and technologies to characterize and measure respiratory 
exposure agents; (5) devises and conducts clinical research studies on 
the causes, detection, and quantification of occupational respiratory 
disease; (6) in conjunction with researchers in the Health Effects 
Laboratory Division, carries out an experimental pathology program 
utilizing appropriate laboratory animals to study the mechanism and 
progression of lung damage from occupational respiratory exposures; (7) 
carries out laboratory studies of respirators, their components, and 
evaluates new respirator technology to: (a) Determine the effectiveness 
of respirators; (b) develop new or improved testing and certification 
instrumentation needed to evaluate emerging respirator technologies; 
(c) evaluate the added stresses from the use of respiratory protective 
equipment.
    Respirator Branch (CCAA). (1) Provides for the protection of 
workers in dangerous environments by certifying reliability, safety, 
and efficacy of respiratory protection devices; (2) evaluates, 
certifies, and maintains official records on air-supplied and air-
purifying respirators as required by the FMSHAct of 1977 and the OSHAct 
of 1970; (3) assists in the development and promulgation of new 
performance criteria, standards, and guidelines for certification of 
respirators; (4) evaluates quality control plans, conducts in-plant 
audits of the manufacturers' quality control programs, and monitors the 
quality and performance of certified respirators procured on the open 
market; (5) investigates field problems associated with NIOSH-certified 
respirators; (6) provides technical assistance on the selection, use, 
maintenance, and operation of respiratory protective equipment.
    Surveillance Branch (CCAB). (1) Periodically collects, analyzes and 
disseminates health and hazard information related to occupational 
respiratory diseases; (2) collaborates on the establishment of health 
surveillance systems in order to: (a) Summarize information relating to 
overall incidence, prevalence, mortality, and importance of 
occupational respiratory diseases; (b) describe the occurrence of 
specific diseases (including temporal trends) with regard to 
occupation, industry, geography, demographic characteristics, and other 
factors for which information is available; (c) describe the 
distribution and trends in occupational exposure to agents responsible 
for respiratory diseases; (3) periodically produces and develops 
reports describing workplace hazards and work-related occupational lung 
diseases; (4) coordinates with other Federal agencies and promulgates 
rules as provided for in the FMASHAct of 1977, and the OSHAct of 1970, 
to provide for the collection and reporting of health and hazard 
surveillance data related to occupational respiratory diseases; (5) 
provides technical assistance and recommendations concerning medical 
screening and health surveillance of workers exposed to respiratory 
hazards in the workplace; (6) conducts surveys of hazardous exposures 
and the use of personal protective equipment; (7) synthesizes data and 
frames recommendations for priority setting, hypothesis generation, and 
improved methods for data collection; (8) develops and evaluates 
surveillance methods of data collection, processing, and statistical 
analysis.
    Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program Activity (CCAB2). (1) 
Plans, coordinates, and processes the medical examinations provided 
under the FMSHAct of 1977; (2) operates a certification program for 
participating medical facilities and physicians; (3) evaluates and 
approves employer programs for the examination of employees in 
accordance with published regulations; (4) arranges for the examination 
of employees who work at locations not having an approved examination 
program; (5) operates the National Coal Workers Autopsy Program.
    Delete in their entirety the titles and functional statements for 
the following: Epidemiological Investigations Branch (CCA2); 
Environmental Investigations Branch (CCA3); Clinical Investigations 
Branch (CCA4); Laboratory Investigations Branch (CCA5); Certification 
and Quality Assurance Branch (CCA6); and Examination Processing Branch 
(CCA8).

    Dated: January 6, 1999.
Jeffrey P. Koplan,
Director.
[FR Doc. 99-1131 Filed 1-15-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-18-M